Electric call board for hotels



July 19, 1938. G. JOHNSON 2,124,490

- ELECTRIC CLL BOARD FOR HOTELS Filed April 28, 193e 3 sheets-sheet 1 620236 C/o'n'ow INVENTOR BY my my@ Y l ATTORNEYS WITN ESS G. JoHNsoN 2,124,490 ELECTRIC 4vCALL BOARD FOR HOTELS Filed April 2s, 195s 5 sheets-sheet 2 o o o o o o o o o o o. o o 0 0 o o o o Q o o o o o o o o o o o o o \o 0 v o v o o o o o o o 0 0 0 0 0 0 .u v o o o o o o t o ,u o,o o o o o o o. o o o of o o o\o/o o o o o o o o o o o. o o o o o o o Wvo Xo o o o o o, o o iN f l y @@Emmmmm mm@ @mw .m n a July 19, 1938.

GY LWAS'OW/- I INVENTOR B* ATTORNEYS WITNESS July 19, 1938. JOHNSON' vELECTRIC CALL BOARD FOR HOTELS.

Filed April 2s, 195e s sheets-sheet 5 BY myzwy@ ATTORNEYS WITNESS Patented July 19, 1938 Y 'UNiTEDsTATEs PATENT oFFlcl-:f

. 2,124,490 ELECTRIC CALL BOARD Foa HOTELS v Y George Johnson, Hollywood, Calif. Application April v28, 1936, .SerialNm 76,859

" 1 Claim. (C1. 161-2) This invention relates to electric call boards for hotels and has fo-r an object to provide a device of this character having a series of electric circuits, closed at regular intervals in the movement of a clock, these circuits having respective toggle switches and pilot lights, and a common buzzer whereby, when a circuit is closed by movement of the clock, the buzzer will be operatedto call the attention of the clerk and at the same time the associated pilot lightv Will be lighted whereupon the operator. may open the toggle switch to disconnect the buzzer and by a glance at the vertical row of pins designating rooms to be called, may call these rooms at the appointed time requested Vby the guests.

A further object is to provide in va device 'of this character a novel resilient contact carried bythe hour hand of the clock and coacting with stationary switch contacts arranged at fifteen minute intervals around the face of the clock, the resilient contact maintaining wiping engagement with each pin for ten minutes to energize the corresponding pilot light for this length of time and then advance toward theV next stationary contact in sequence during a ve minute interval of time, the purpose of this being to make sure that the room clerk or person in charge of the call board will havearnple time to make the various calls indicated to be made at a pre- 00 determined time.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of this character which will be formed of a few strong simple and durable parts, which will be inexpensive to manufacture, and which will not easily get out of order.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, it being understood that various modifications may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claim without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention. A In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification,`

Figure 1 is a front elevation ofan `electric call board constructed in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a rear elevation of the call board.

Figure 3 is a vertical section through the call board taken on the line 3-3 of Figure l.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary front elevation of the clock face and showing the resilient and fixed 'switch contacts.

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a detail perspective view of one of the room designating pins.

Referring now to the drawings in Which like characters of reference designate similar parts in the various views, the call board is shown to comprise a casing including a front wall IIJ, a rear wall II, a bottom I2, and a top I3. A clock-i work mechanism I4 is secured to the rear face of the Vfront wall I0 and preferably the latter is formed of insulating material such as Bakelite. Arbors of the minute hand I 5y and of the hour hand I 6 extend through a suitable opening in the front Wall I0. A clock dial I I is inscribed on the front wall'and a glass door I8 is disposed on the front wall to house the clock hands and dial.

A plurality of lstationary switch contacts in the nature of pins I9 are arranged in a circular series concentric with and inside of the hour designating numerals of the dial. These pins are varranged at fifteen minute intervals apart. A resilient VVswitch contact 20 in the nature of a fiat zigzag leaf spring is provi-ded at one end with a fiat straightV portion 2I which Yis clamped in a longitudinal kerf 22 formed in the end of the pointer of the hour handl 63' The freeY end of the resilientcontact is inclined obliquely rearwardly from the longitudinal median of the hour hand, as shown at 23. Y l

`The lobes of the zigzag spring are so proportioned that the Vinclined end v23 of the contact Will have wiping engagement with each stationary contact pin I9 through a ten minute interval and then will advance toward the next Vcontact pin in sequence during a'flve minute interval. yAs a result ofthe above described construction of the resilientswitch contact the electric circuit controlled by this time actuated circuit closer will be energized through a ten minute' time period which I is sufficient to give the room clerk kor other person in charge of the call board to make the appointed room calls.

The front wall I 0 below the time controlled 'circuit closer just described, is provided with a board. A buzzer 28, common to all of the switches and pilot lights is arranged on the rear face of the front wall, as best shown in Figure 3. A conductor wire 29 connects one terminal of the buzzer with one end of the bus bar 24, as best shown in Figure 1. A conductor wire 3D connects the other terminal of the buzzer with a bus bar 3| which extends parallel to the bus bar 24. One pole of each toggle switch is connected to the associated pilot lamp by a conductor Awire 32. The same pole is connected to an associated stationary switch contact pin on the clock dial by means of a conductor wire 33, as best shown diagrammatically in Figure 1. 'Ihe other pole of the toggle switch is connected to the bus bar 3| by' means of a conductor wire 34.

A transformer 35 has one secondary pole' grounded to the clock work mechanism by means 'of a conductor wire 36, while the other second-V bus bar 24, pilot lamp 26, wire 32, wire 33, and

stationary switch contact pin I9 grounded by the resilient switch contact 20, and the pilot light will thus glow.

Simultaneously, a circuit may be Ytraced from the bus bar 24, to the wire 29, buzzer 2B, wire 30, wire 3|, wire 34, switch 21 and wire 33 to the switch contact I9 groundedy by the resilient switch contact 20. By opening the switch 21 the.'

buzzer may be silenced while the pilot lamp bulb 32 will continue to glow until thelamp circuit is broken by disengagement of the resilient switch contact from the xed switch contact.

By now referring to Figures land 3 it will be seen that below each pilot lamp 26, a vertical row of perforations 35 is formed in the front wall I0 of the call board. The perforations receive pins 36', best shown in Figure 6, and each is inscribed with the Vnumber of Van. associated room in the hotel, as shown at 31'. 'I'he pins are normally stored in two groups of openings formed on opposite sides of the dials as indicated at 38. A group of openings to receive spare pins is formed in the call board above one of the groups 38, as shown at 39. Also a group of openings is formed in the call board abovethe other group of openings 38, as indicated at 40 to receive pins 4I colored red, the use of which will now be described.

By again referring to Figure 1 it will be seen that the front face of the call board, above the toggle switches, is inscribed with numerals corresponding to the numerals on the dial and between each two successive numerals the face is inscribed with numerals indicating fteen minute, thirty minute and forty-ve minute intervals of the hour included between Vsaid two successive dial numerals.

To'operate the call board, the room clerk will remove pins from the groups of openings indicated at 38 and insert them in the openings 35 in the call board which correspond to the time the guest in a certain room has requested that his room be called. For instance, guest in room number 13 may request to be called at 6 oclock A. M. The roomV clerk places the pin marked I3 in one of the openings in the vertical row below the pilot light headed by the numeral 6, as shown. He then makes sure that the toggle switch is closed. When the hour of 6 oclock A. M. arrives, Vthe resilient switchcontact 20 willl engage the stationary contact pin i9 on the dial and close the time controlled circuit to the pilot lamp bulb, as previously described. At the same time, the .associated toggle switch being closed, the buzzer will be energized. The room clerk may now open the toggle switch to disconnect the buzzer and at the same time pick up his telephone and wake the guest if this is the purpose for which the guest in room number 13 was to be called.

Likewise, the room clerk may thereupon call any of the other room numbers designated by corresponding pins in the same vertical row headed by the numeral G. Due to the pilot light hours between 12 oclock noon and 12 oclock night. In such case the room clerk'proceeds as just described to insert the corresponding room pins in the row headed by the numeral corresponding to the time the guest wishes to be called, but as a visible warning that the call is a P. M. call, the room clerk will then remove one of the red pins 4I from the group 4l) andvplace it just above the room designating pin. Thus red targets will designate the afternoon or night calls before midnight. Y Y

Since the description of the call board has been given as the description of `the parts progressed, it is thought that the construction and operation of the device will be understood without further explanation.

What is claimed is:

An electric call board comprising a casing, clockwork mechanism therein, the front vwall of the casing having a clock dial inscribed therein, a circular series of stationary pins forming switch contacts inthe clockV dial, a resilient switch contact having one end secured to the hour hand of the clockwork mechanism and the free end adapted to have wiping engagement with each pin, circuits controlled by the circuit closer formed by the resilient and fixed switch contacts, pilot lightsin the circuits disposed in a horizontal row on the casing below the clock dial, a horizontal row ofntoggle switches in `the circuits and disposed on Ythe casing vabove the pilot lights, indices denoting 12 hours and 15 minute intervals of the hours inscribed on the casing above the toggle switches, and vertical rows of openings in the casing below' the'pil'ot lights and in alignment with the pilot lights and toggle switches for receiving reminder pins.VY i

GEORGE JOHNSON. 

